Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Arlandria/Del Ray Trolley Line Mock-Ups

This very well may be a pipe-dream, but perhaps the city of Alexandria will see the benefit of additional free trolley lines between Metro stations and other portions of the city. You might ask, why do we need a trolley when there is Dash and Metro bus service all around Alexandria. Truthfully, I'd love to hear additional arguments about the benefits of a free trolley. Feel free to provide opinions or statistics about the benefits, besides a free ride to Metro for residents (which is a good place to start). Would a line bring people in? Would it's ridership justify its cost (The cost of the King St. trolley could be up to $800K/year).

I mocked-up two potential trolley routes. The Mt. Vernon Ave line could happen. In fact, I've even heard rumors that Old Town might want to give up theirs because the in-between businesses miss out on a lot of potential window shoppers. Del Ray and Arlandria don't have the "problem" that Old Town has -- a main attraction. Trolley riders in Old Town are primarily trying to get from the King St. Metro station to the waterfront. In Del Ray and Arlandria, it's more about a sojourn than a destination. The Birchmere could be one destination, but no one is walking from the Braddock Rd. Metro to the Birchmere as it is.

The green colored route would be a nice-to-have whenever Potomac Yard development gets further along and the Potomac Yard Metro gets built (yes, I said when, not if... I'm an optimist).

Take a look, let me know what you think and if you have any other potential stops to add or an idea for a better route.

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